AT&T introduces new tiered data pricing in time for new iPhone

The era of unlimited mobile data is coming to an end. Say hello to tiered pricing and monthly usage caps.

AT&T is announcing that it is ending its unlimited plans for new smart phones as well as the iPad and replacing it with tiered pricing plans that will be cheaper for most users but will cost more for a small number of power users. Tethering plans are also covered by the changes and will come to the iPhone this summer with the new iPhone 4.0 update.

Starting June 7, if you buy a new smart phone data plan, you have the choice of paying $15 a month for 200 megabytes a month or $25 a month for 2 gigabytes. These replace the existing $30 a month unlimited plan, which AT&T customers can keep if they have an account prior to June 7. June 7, by the way, is the day Apple is expected to unveil the next generation iPhone.

AT&T is framing this as a win for mobile data users, many of whom overpay for simple data usage. The company said 65 percent of users would be able to fit under the new 200 megabytes per month cap while said 98 percent would be able to fit under the 2 gig monthly cap.

If you go over the limit, DataPlus users will be charged an additional $15 for 200 more megabytes that month. DataPro users will be charged $10 more for an additional gigabyte of data.

AT&T will send users reminders via text message and email when they reach 65 percent, 90 percent and 100 percent of their monthly allotment. AT&T also offers a mobile application that lets users check on their mobile data usage.

These new prices will also be instituted for new iPad 3G users after June 7. So if you buy one after that date, the $30 unlimited plan goes away and is replaced by the $25 2 gigabyte plan.

AT&T said tethering is finally coming to the iPhone with the iPhone 4.0 update, expected to come out around the same time as the next iPhone. If you use your smart phone as a modem for your laptop, expect to pay $20 more over the cost of the $25 DataPro plan.

These changes will not be popular with tech pundits and critics, many of whom hate the idea of networks ending the unlimited data party. AT&T, for its part, has been hinting for some time that this was coming.

AT&T believes this will encourage potential smart phone owners to take the plunge when they know there are cheaper data options than the current $30 plan. This is also a way to ensure that the networks don’t get bogged down by a small number of bandwidth hogs.

But this could be a bummer for many iPhone users, who may end up paying more for data. Many users may actually spend less in the short term, but as more people use their iPhones and other smart phones for more things, data usage will only go up. Staying on this side of the 2 gigabyte per month limit might prove harder and harder going forward.

The big question is will these limits change as the usage goes up and the networks get more upgrades? If not, this could be affect an increasing number of users and could throw some cold water on the mobile data revolution going on.

Even if the limits change, just knowing there are limits could stifle some usage. That might be good for network reliability. But it still feels like the end of an era.